Water-tube boiler.



- PATENTED AUG. 27, 1907.- R. G. MONTEAGLE. WATER TUBE BOILER.APPLICATION FILED 1113.16, 1906.

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No. 864,323. PATENTED AUG. 27, 1907. R. c. MONTEAGLE.

WATER TUBE BOILER.

APPLIOATION FILED MAR 16, 1906.

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PATENTED AUG. 27, 1907. MONTEAGLE. WATERTUBE BOILER. APPLICATION FILEDMAR.16, 1900.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HALF TO JAMES SPIERS, JR, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

WATER-TUBE BOILER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 27, 1907.

Application filed March 16 1906. Serial No. 306,383.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ROBERT CHARLES MONTEAGLE, of Winchester, in thecounty of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Water-Tube Boilers, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to that class of water tube boilers in which thetubes, located over the firebox in the path of the ascending products ofcombustion, are expanded at their ends into headers, there being aseries of headers at each end of the series of tubes, abutting togetheredge to edge, the headers communicating with the steam and water drumsof the boiler. In this class of boilers, it is desirable that the watertubes be staggered so that each tube will alternate vertically or in avertical plane with a space between two tubes in an adjacent row oftubes, to the end that the products of combustion rising between thetubes shall, after passing between the members of one transverse row orseries of tubes, impinge against and be deflected by the members of thenext transverse row above, thus insuring a maximum duration of contactbetween the heated gases and the surfaces of the tubes. I'Ieretofore theabutting edges of the headers have been vertically arranged. In order tosecure the desired staggering of the tubes when vertical headers areemployed, it is necessary to corrugate the abutting edges of the headersin order that the tubes of one transverse row may alternate verticallywith spaces between the tubes of an adjacent transverse row. Thisconstruction involves an undesirable frictional resistance to the flowof water through the headers, the flow of water having to conform to thesinuosities of the edges of the headers so that its direction isabruptly changed several times in passing from end to end of a head er.Corrugated headers are also open to the objec tion that they arerelatively expensive in construction, owing to the increased quantity ofmetal involved.

My invention hasfor its chief object to enable the water tubes to bestaggered in such manner as to cause the members of each transverse rowof tubes to alternate vertically with spaces between the members of theadjacent row of tubes, without the employment of corrugated headers, theheaders having substantially straight internal surfaces along which thewater is adapted to flow with the minimum frictional resistance.

The invention also has for its object to augment or accelerate the flowor circulation of the water in a water tube boiler by the aid of thefeed-water.

The invention also has for its object to provide certain improvements inthe details of construction of the headers.

To these ends the invention consists in the improvements which I willnow proceed to describe and claim.

Of the accompanying drawings, forming a part of thisspecification,Figure 1 represents a transverse vertical section takenthrough the steam drum of a water tube boiler and through a portion ofthe casing in front of the forward series of headers. Fig. 2 repre sentsa section on line 22, Fig. 1. Fig. 3 represents a top plan view of theboiler shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Fig. 4 represents an enlargement of aportion of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 represents a fragmentary view of portions oftwo headers, one being shown in section and the other in frontelevation. Fig. 6 represents a section on line 66, Fig. 5. Fig. 7represents a section on line 7-:+7, Fig. 6. Fig. 8 representsa side viewof the hand hole plate shown in section in Fig. 7. Fig. 9 represents asection on line 99, Fig. 5.

The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in all thefigures.

In the drawings, 12 represents the steam drum and 13 the water or muddrum of a water-tube boiler, the steam drum being located above theforward portion of the firebox 14, while the mud drum is located at aconsiderably lower point and at the rear end of the firebox. Inclinedwater tubes 15 are located over the firebox in the path of the ascendingproducts of combustion. The ends of the water tubes 15 are expanded intoheaders 16, of which there are two series, one series at the front andthe other at the rear of the space above the firebox. The headers areabutted together edge to edge, and their abutting edges are inclined,preferably at an angle of degrees to the horizontal, the edges of eachheader being substantially straight and substantially parallel with eachother, excepting the outer edges of the headers at the end portions ofthe series, which are necessarily truncated to conform to the verticalside walls of the boiler casing as shown in Fig. 1. The horizontaldistance between the abutting edges of each header is preferably suchthat two or more (preferably three) tubes are adapted to be inserted ina horizontal or transverse row in each header, between the abuttingedges, the tubes in each header coinciding'with the tubes in the otherheaders, so that the entire series of tubes is arranged in transverse orhorizontal rows exetnding from side to side of the boiler. The tubes arealso arranged in oblique rows extending parallel with the inclinedabutting edges of the headers. The inclination of the abutting edges ofthe headers being as above stated, preferably at an angle of 60 degreesto the horizontal, it will be seen that the tubes are laid out orarranged in a continuous sequence of equilateral triangles, so that themembers of each horizontal row of tubes alternate vertically with spacesbetween the members of an adjacent row of tubes; hence the products ofcombustion passing upwardly between the members of one horizontal rowwill impinge upon and be deflected by the members of the next higherhorizontal row. This arrangement results in a relatively long andintimate contact of the heated gases with the tubes, and the maximumutilization of the thermal efiiciency of the fire.

It will be seen that the described inclination of the abutting edges ofthe headers enables the tubes to be relatively arranged as abovedescribed without corrugation of the abutting edges, the said edgesbeing substantially straight and presenting straight internal surfaces,along which the water flows with the minimum frictional resistance. Theheaders give the advantage of a more rapid circulation, and are,moreover, less expensive and lighter than the ordinary corrugatedheaders.

The upper ends of the front series of headers are conneeted with thesteam drum 12 by conduits 17 expanded into the upper ends of the headersand into the wall of the steam drumv The lower ends of the headers ofthe rear series are similarly connected with the mud drum 17 by shortconduits 18.

The front walls of the front headers and the rear walls of the rearheaders are provided with hand holes 19, each hand hole coinciding witha hole for the reception of a water tube 15, and permitting theinsertion into the header of a device for expanding the end of a tubeinserted in said hole, and also permitting the inspection and removal ofthe tubes. The hand holes 19 are provided with tapered plugs 20 whichare inserted in the hand holes from within the header, the tapered metalsurfaces of the plugs bearing directly on the walls of the hand holeswithout gaskets or packing. Each plug 20 is secured by means of theusual dog or yoke 21, bolt 22, and nut 23. The header walls are providedat suitable intervals with larger hand holes 24, each being preferablyof sufficient size to coincide with a plurality, and preferably three,of the water-tube holes, as indicated in Fig. 5. The larger hand holes24 permit the application, inspection, and removal of a plurality oftubes, and also permit insertion and removal of the plugs 20, the largerhand holes 24 being provided in such numbers and so arranged that allthe plugs 20 can be reached through the series of larger hand holes. Thehand holes 24 are provided with covers 25, held by yokes 26, bolts 27,and nuts 28.

30 represents a down-flow pipe which extends from an end portion of thesteam drum 12 to an end portion of the mud drum 13. If desired, theremay be two of these down-flow pipes, one at each end of the steam andmud drums. The return of water from the steam to the mud drum is Whollythrough the down-flow pipe 30, the flow through the headers being whollyupward. To accelerate or augment the circulation, I provide means forinjecting feed water downwardly into the.

upper portion of the down-flow pipe 30. The feed wastraight-edgedinclined I by the tube.

ter is preferably supplied through an economizer, comprising reartransverse headers 31, forward transverse headers 32, and inclined Watertubes 33, connecting the headers 31 and 32. The feed water enters therear header 31 through a supply pipe 34, and is heated in its passagethrough the headers and through the pipes 33, the economizer as a wholebeing preferably located above the water tubes 15 and in the path of theascending products of combustion, which leave the casing through anoutlet 35, above the economizer.

36 represents an outlet pipe which conducts water from the front header32 of the economizer downwardly into the upper portion of the down-flowpipe 30, the outlet 36 extending into the upper end of the downflow pipeand a short distance below the same. The stream of feed water thusdischarged into the downflow pipe gives a positive impetus to thedownwardly flowing water. The velocity of the water is converted intopressure upon reaching the mud drum, causing a positive upward fiow fromthence irrespective of the action of the heat. The rapidity of thecirculation is thus materially increased or augmented.

The boiler casing may be of any suitable construction, and is preferablycomposed of sheet iron, thebrick and asbestos. It is provided with theusual or any suitable boiler mountings, grate bars and ash pan.

The hand holes 19 are preferably made of sufficient diameter to permitthe temporary insertion therein of a bushing or ferrule, through which awater-tube 15 may pass, when it is being inserted or removed. Thisferrule prevents abrasion of the wall of the hand hole The ferrule is tobe removed after the passage of a tube through the hand hole.

It will be observed that the front and rear sides or faces of theheaders are substantially rhomboidal, two of the parallel sides beinginclined and the other two substantially horizontal.

I claim:

1. A water tube boiler comprising headers having sub stantially straightopposed edges and water tubes communicating with said headers, the tubesengaging each header being arranged in transverse rows, and the edges ofthe headers being inclined at an angle of substantially degrees to thehorizontal, whereby the tubes are staggered so that the members of eachrow alternate vertically with spaces between the members of thecontiguous row.

2. A water tube boiler comprising headers having sub stantially straightopposed edges and water'tubes communicating with said headers, the tubesbeing arranged in a continuous sequence of equilateral triangles, andthe edges of the headers being inclined at an angle of substan tially 60degrees to the horizontal.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature, in presence of twowitnesses.

ROBERT CHARLES MONTEAGLE.

Witnesses C. F. BROWN, E. BATCHELDER.

